The Ultimate Miracle Cure for Spots/Zits/Acne

I've been meaning to blog about this for a long time. After suffering in silence with acne since I was 13 and using every high street concoction going (and I mean EVERY high street concoction going!)- I finally went to my doctor 5 years later. He prescribed me Duac Once Daily Gel and I just wanted to share this with anyone suffering with acne, piling on make-up to cover it and sometimes, making the problem worse.

I really can't describe how amazing this product is and the speed it works is probably is why I find it such. Within a couple of days, any breakouts (even severe ones!) I have will have virtually disappeared completely and my overall skin texture is so much smoother and softer. It also prevents breakouts. It has changed my life massively - not only do I spend a lot less time doing my make-up in the morning (no cover-up-mission) but its made me a lot more confident.

In the UK, I believe you can only get this product on prescription. However, as far as I know, it is widely prescribed by doctors due to its quick and effective results. I do not want to condone buying this product illegally over the internet but I know if I was not able to get this product, I would probably resort to that myself!

It can be a little drying on the skin (I use it morning and evening), so I usually wait until has dried then I apply Oilatum Natural Repair Face Cream over the top. However, if you have very oily skin, this dryness may do you a favour! 

I still have hyper-pigmentation and uneven skintone but breakouts (definitely my main concern) have disappeared and, if you keep using it, for good. 

If you'd like to read more about the product, including ingredients and side effects, click here.

I thought I'd (bravely!) include a 'before' and 'after' photos of the difference. I didn't ever have photos taken of me without make-up, but I'm sure you can see the 'texture' of my skin through the make-up as well my breakouts! The 'before' photo was taken in February 2010 and the 'after' picture was taken in November 2011. I started using the 'gel' in April 2010.

I hope you found this useful!


-LJ xoxo

My Top 5 Make-up Products

For today's post I thought I'd share with you the five make-up products that I use every single day and could not live without!

1. Laura Mercier Illuminating Tinted Moisturiser SPF 20 in Bare Radiance

I LOVE this product. It doesn't give a lot of coverage as it's a tinted moisturiser but the light-reflecting pigments in it give your skin a beautiful healthy glow. I tend to mix it with my high coverage Estée Lauder Double Wear Foundation (in the shade 'Bone') as that has a rather matte finish and I prefer a more dewy look - especially in the Winter when I don't want my skin to look dull and flat. It's quite an expensive product but you don't have to use a lot as the consistency is quite thick when it comes out of the tube. The fact its a squeezable tube, though, means you get every last drop (UNLIKE my Estée Lauder Double Wear which is a glass bottle with no pump.) It doesn't last very long on the skin - definitely not as long as my Double Wear - but when I mix the two together I get the best of both worlds! A definite repurchase as this and the Double Wear make my perfect foundation!

2. Maybelline PURE.COVER Mineral Concealer in 02 Natural 

This is my all-time favourite concealer! Maybelline liquid concealers tend to be brilliant in themselves - I used to use the Maybelline Superstay 24-hour concealer but after a while I found it far too thick and drying (although it would have lasted 24 hours if I'd let it - it does not budge!) Anyway, back to the Mineral Concealer! It goes on lightly and effortlessly and the yellow undertones covers my very dark under-eye circles without leaving them cakey or heavy. It's a bargain at around £5 and does a fantastic job at covering blemishes too.





3. Urban Decay NAKED Palette 

One of the most talked about palettes for a reason - it's phenomenal. All the colours you'd need to create a natural eye make-up look (and even two colours for a night time look) with matte brown shadows such as 'Naked' and 'Buck' - fantastic for filling in your brows. It's an all-round amazing palette and one I pick up every single day without fail! I even used it on my bridal and bridesmaid clients in the summer. It retails between £30-40 but is quite hard to get a hold of! So if you find it, buy it - you won't regret it.

4. Benefit High Beam

As I said before, I LOVE a dewy look for the winter and this product definitely achieves that. The cool pink undertone works wonders on my cheekbones to add a subtle glow to the skin - with just a touch of shummer - nothing sparkly at all! You can even mix a dot in with your foundation or blush to further enhance the glowy-look. A little goes a LONG way too - I've had that little bottle for a very long time and its not even half way used. It's about £18 but you can get trial samples off eBay for about £1.99 - perfect if you want to try it out before.





5. Revlon ColourBurst Lipstick in Soft Rose

The PERFECT autumn/winter lipstick which looks like 'my-lips-but-better'. It's a gorgeous tawny-pink-raspberry shade that seems to go with just about everything. It has no scent or taste to it (one of the things I love most about Revlon lip colours - no horrible lipstick-y scent), goes on smoothly and lasts a relatively long time - especially paired with a lipliner. I've got quite a collection of these lipsticks which I may do a seperate review on so watch this space. They're around £7.99 - but, in my opinion, worth every penny.





-LJ xoxo

From Dry to Glowing Winter Skin!

As my first blog post, I thought I'd start with a round-up of the skin care products I haven't been able to live without this side of Christmas. During Autumn and Winter, my skin tends to get very dry and can sometimes crack if I don't moisturise it properly. However, the more you look after your skin (especially this time of year), the less foundation or concealer you'll have to use to cover any blemishes. You'll also find that any make-up you do use will be more seamless and will go on a lot smoother!

1. Estée Lauder 'Soft Clean' Foaming Cleanser

I use this product at night when I'm in the bath or shower with a soft flannel - it takes off all my make-up effortlessly. It's a super-rich luxurious cleanser with quite a thick consistency but you only need about the size of a penny as it lathers up with water. It's extremely hydrating and leaves my skin feeling very soft (as the name suggests!). It also has a lovely floral scent. It costs around £20 but the tube lasts forever. I bought it back in January - I've used it every night since and it's still going (although I am on the last bit!)

2. Neutrogena Deep Clean Invigorating Foaming Scrub

Another one of my can't-live-without products - I've yet to find a facial scrub that I like more. I use this every day immediately after washing off the cleanser. It has a gel-like consistency with little blue beads in it that clean right down into your pores. It's not at all harsh or scratchy so it's ideal for every day use...especially as my skin can get so dry and flaky it's important for me to gently scrub it away! It also has menthyl in it which leaves your skin cool and tingly and makes it feel like it's REALLY clean. It's about £3 and you can get it from Superdrug and the tube, again, lasts me a very long time - I forget the last time I bought it but it was definitely around this time last year. I tend to leave it on for a few minutes and then use my next product while it's still on...

3. Garnier ProActive ExfoBrush

I could not rave about this product any more. I use the cleanser inside the tube with the brush while my Neutrogena scrub is still on - just to further enhance the exfoliation. It's fantastic at getting in all the contours of your face and leaves my skin completely clean. It also takes off any residue or existing make-up you may have missed with the previous two products (you can see this on the brush). It's about £7 but it lasts YEARS. You use such little product and get so much in there you won't have to buy it again for a long time!

4. Oilatum Natural Repair Face Cream

After using a make-up wipe to remove my eye make-up, I tend not to stick a cocktail of products on my face. Instead, I slather my face in this cream. It's free from fragrances, preservatives and emulsifiers and suitable for dry or sensitive skin. It's perfect for my skin type and removes any tightness, dryness or irritation. I wake up with soft, smooth supple skin. At £7 it's pretty reasonable for such a wonder-product and can be found in Boots.

 Morning:

After such a rigorous night-time routine, I tend to keep it simple in the morning.

1. Nivea Visage Pure and Natural Cleansing Toner

I use this with a cotton pad in the morning to remove any residue from the Oilatum Face Cream. It wakes up my skin and leaves it cool and refreshed. It contains natural plant extracts such as Argan Oil and Aloe Vera. It's also relatively cheap (between £3 and £4) and is available from Superdrug or Boots.

2. Estée Lauder Idealist Even Skintone Illuminator

Quite a pricey product (£46 for 30ml) but this fast-acting serum from Estée Lauder is proven to significantly reduce the look of uneven skintone - blotchiness, blemish marks, dark spots, discolourations.

And it really has. I'm not sure what's in this miracle-serum but it has cleared my skin up amazingly and has even reduced the appearance of some old acne scars (hurray!) I use a pea-sized amount of this product all over my face after my Nivea toner and before my moisturiser...

3. Estée Lauder DayWear Advanced Multi-Protection Anti-Oxidant SPF 15 Creme

Unless I'm having a VERY dry skin day, this is my daily moisturiser. The DayWear I have is only a sample-size which I got free a while ago with another purchase from Estée Lauder. However, that being said, it's definitely on my repurchase list. The mint-green tone of the moisturiser minimises any redness while the anti-oxidants and SPF 15 protect my skin from pollution and UVA/UVA rays (not that there's a lot of that in Aberystwyth!) It's about £37 but, as a previous buyer of the standard 50ml Estée Lauder moisturiser pot (I used to use Revelation one until it got discontinued last Christmas!) I know it lasts me exactly 6 months! 

I hope you enjoyed my first post and you found it useful (especially if you suffer from dry Winter skin yourself!) and I'll write another entry soon!

Thanks, guys!

-LJ xoxo